Strategy Analytics Wearables Service brings you daily coverage of the year’s largest consumer electronics convention: CES 2018. Each day’s post will focus on a different wearable device type, with day 1 kicking off tackling Smartwatches – those wrist worn wearables that are capable of running 3rd party applications.
Major smartwatch announcements from the show floor this year include:
- A partnership has been announced between Apple and Whirlpool, which will allow Apple Watch users to control 20 Whirlpool appliances from the wrist later in 2018. This furthers a noted trend of smart home control via wearables.
- Fossil has announced new Android Wear smartwatch models through several sub-brands, such as the Skagen Falster and Kate Spade New York Scallop. This continues Fossil Group’s smart and semi-smart wristwear expansion from 2017, though smartwatch models have reportedly sold below expectations for the fashion group last year.
- Garmin, who has seen growing success in smartwatches, has announced the Forerunner 645 at the show, which most notably sports added standalone music storage and playback capability - a first, and a much requested feature, for Garmin sports watches.
Smartwatch sales volumes are forecasted to grow 31% in 2018 globally, with cannibalization over fitness bands beginning to take a stronger hold. New models announced at CES, as well as others expected at Baselworld in March, will propel the smartwatch space to continued growth in 2018, after the 2016 slowdown and 2017 rebound.
Exhibit 1: Garmin Forerunner 645:
